warm (but not extreme) summers, mild winters and ample annual rainfall helping to yield a rich array of tipples, including Shiraz, Chardonnay, Semillon Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. You can sample them - with local hams, cheeses and truffles - at dozens of cellar doors (see margaretriver.com for an extensive winery map). Beer and cider quaffers may prefer Cheeky Monkey - one of the area’s burgeoning craft breweries. Wine lovers and foodies should time their trip with the Margaret River Gourmet Escape (held each November in and around the hip little town of Margaret River). Surfing is another of the region’s passions. Margs’ 130km coastline has over 70 surf breaks, of varying difficulty, from daredevil to beginner. There are surf schools and stores in the beach-side towns of Dunsborough and Yallingup (which are also swell spots for catching a fiery WA sunset). Adorned with other-worldly-looking stalactites, Margaret River’s mysterious limestone caves reward exploration. Ngilgi, Mammoth, Lake and Jewel caves are the pick. Fossils, dating back over 35,000 years, have been discovered in them.
Top to bottom: Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse, Dunsborough; Getting up-close with Albany Whale Tours, Albany; A passenger in search of a Southern Right whale. Tourism WA, Steve McKenna
ALBANY If deepest south-west WA has a bustling metropolis, it’s Albany. But this port town - population 35,000 - is so relaxed it makes Perth seem like Bangkok. Graced with attractive 19th century colonial buildings - many housing pleasant cafes, restaurants and museums - Albany became WA’s first British settlement in 1826, three years before Perth’s Swan River Colony was founded. Named after Frederick, Duke of Albany and York, and son of King George III, the town grew around King George Sound, a tranquil expanse of water that nudges the rough and tumble of the Southern Ocean. The Sound is the setting for Albany’s much-heralded whale-watching tours. Every June, migrating cetaceans come north from the frigid waters around Antarctica to breed. It’s September when I visit, so the